Heretofore, it was known to dispense ice from an ice bin located underneath a service counter. The advantage of such configuration was the ice dispenser was located at the counter level, but the ice bin and related equipment could be located below the counter and out of sight, thus providing additional counter space. As is well known, counter space is a valuable commodity in a retail establishment, and any increase in counter space is of value. Such undercounter construction is known in the art. One way of bringing ice from the undercounter bin to the counter level dispenser was with an ice auger. Generally, this prior art auger was a one piece assembly (made unitary, such as machined from one piece of aluminum, or originally formed from several pieces and made unitary as by welding) which was from 3 to 5 feet in length, 4 feet being typical. The unitary auger construction was desired because of the loads imposed by the ice on the auger, and the length was necessary to reach from the bottom of the bin to the upper discharge point.
The one piece long auger, however, had its own handicaps. The long auger had to be handled carefully as its long length made it more susceptible to being damaged or bent. It was more difficult to install, particularly in the field at the retail outlet. If the dispenser was in a low (9 feet or less) ceiling area, the ceiling could interfere with the removal and installation of the long single piece agitator for servicing, and it might be necessary to move the entire dispenser to a higher ceiling area where it could be serviced. Inventory storage of replacement augers and their shipment to field locations were more difficult due to the auger's long length.